Parshah Columnists

Discover how Reuben and Gad's settlement east of Jordan led to the spiritual spread of Judaism's values.

My inner feminist bristles at the laws of vows described in the beginning of this week’s Parshah.

The summary verse of the first part of Matot appears to omit the most salient point!

Our mission is not merely to live a holy and wholesome life in Israel; rather, our task is to spread the holiness of Israel to the rest of the world.

The battle against Midian described in the Torah is a crucial struggle which continues in our own time...

"Mateh" is the same slim branch, but now detached from the tree. Despite this, or because of this, the mateh becomes hard and strong, and can be used a supporting staff or as a symbol of leadership...

Do we always need a common enemy in order to rise above our differences?

Gad's battle victims were readily identifiable. With one fell swoop of the sword they would cut off the head together with the arm. The ability to strike such a blow is an indication of tremendous lion-like strength.

The tribes had put sheep first, then children. But can it then be that that they actually loved their sheep more than their children?

G‑d commanded Moses to wage battle against the Midianites, after which he would pass away. But when it came time for Moses to forward the commandment to the Jewish people, the instruction went through some editing . . .

Which is more important--Torah precepts or ethical concepts? It is a well-meaning but misguided question

Moses' dismay at the request of several tribes to remain on the eastern bank of the Jordan is a powerful lesson in Jewish communal responsibility.

The message is mixed

Abstention is a humbling admission of defeat – "There's something in the world that G‑d created for a purpose; other people are capable of using it for that purpose; I cannot."

When you give up something you want in order to make someone else happy, that is commendable. But when you ignore something because you don’t value it sufficiently, that is inexcusable.

Morality is not relative; it just feels that way sometimes.

It is hard to think of any other religion or civilisation that has so predicated its very existence on putting children and their education first.

Had they learned nothing from the sin of the spies who, by de-motivating others through their behavior, condemned an entire generation to forty years of wandering in the desert?